In Reply to: Re: Hah! posted by Spratley on Friday, December 20, 2002 at 15:10:53 :

: Disclaimer: I am not making threats or expressing wishes or otherwise devling into the realm of escalating adversarial confrontations to the dimension of violence. Instead I am discussing a topic, so let's not carry on the "oh yeah?! "OH YEAH!?" here.

: Violence. You said that I don't know about your physicality and that I better be pretty tough. . .

: When I read Thomas Hobbes in college, one thing that impressed upon me very much is where he says --and I can't remember if he says it as a support of the natural morality of man or as an inevitable cause of the State of Nature-- that a person possessed with self interest and with rationality would presumably act in a moral manner. This is because reason gives us capabilities beyond strength and size. Reason also gives us the capability to recognize reason in others. Thus, we ought to treat people with respect because we ought to understand that if we don't, any given person could exact revenge on us. It doesn't matter if they are weak or if they haven't studied martial arts --every intelligent person can use their wits to devise a way to defeat anyone.

: PLeaee, this is all hypothetical and abstract. I don;t want to go down this raod with you, but I do want to discuss a perspective that I have that you may or may not have: Say we met in order to settle our differences. We show up and we realize that I am 6'2", 160 pounds, do not strength train and haven't studied martial arts in a dozen years. But you are 6 feet, 195, lift weights regularly and have had occasional fights during your life which make you comfortable in physical conflict. A few heated words are shared and violence breaks out. You tackle me, sit on me and start to pummeel my face. . . completely confiused and angered that I am sitting there, taking it with a bloddy smile on my face. Just as you are ready to ask me what's so funny, the friend I brought with me climbs out of the dumpster, wraps a garrote around your neck and before you know it you're dead.

: The moral is, you don;t know me well enough to know how I will react, and all the strength or experience or brains oyou have can't keep you from being out-witted. No matter the scenario. Maybe I show up and take a beating just so I can get your license plate number. Maybe its a straight fight, but somewhere in the fight I get my teeth around your thumb and bite it off. The strongest man can fall prey to a lucky kick in the balls, and the smartest man can fall prey to a clever plan.

: Strength or size or fighting skill is not as important as one might think. Don't you agree?

: Post-disclaimer: I do not want to meet you or fight you or even hate you. I just want mutual respect and to talk about things that interest me without being told they're worthless.